Cortlandt To Propose Public-Private Indoor Ice Skating Rink

Supervisor Linda Puglisi is suggesting that the Cortlandt Town Board approve a request for proposals on a public-private indoor ice skating rink at the current site of a street hockey rink.
Photo Credit: Jessica Glenza

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CORTLANDT, N.Y. — Cortlandt town officials are proposing an indoor ice skating rink to be built on the site of an underused outdoor street hockey rink near the Cortlandt Youth Center.

That site could be revamped, Supervisor Linda Puglisi said. Puglisi is hoping the town's approval for a request for proposal will spur a "public-private project."

The town could supply the land to develop an indoor ice skating rink, but in turn rink owners would be required to allow the school and town to use the rink, she said.

The Cortlandt Youth Center is at 3 Memorial Drive, adjacent to Cortlandt's New York State Police barracks and at the southern entrance to the Cortlandt Metro-North railroad station.

"Let’s see what we can get," Puglisi said of the RFP at a Monday evening work session. Cortlandt Town Engineer Ed Vergano estimated the cost of enclosing an indoor ice skating rink at $750,000 to $1 million. Town officials said they felt uncomfortable using taxpayer money for such a project. That estimate did not include equipment and personnel necessary to maintain the rink.

The outdoor hockey rink was developed about 10 years ago, at a cost of about $250,000 to the town, Puglisi said. At the height of the rink's popularity,14 teams used the space, she said.

"Now, we don't have any," she said. No teams have used the outdoor hockey rink for two to three years. "There's not a lot of interest in it at this stage in history."

The seasonal outdoor ice skating rink at Bear Mountain Park, across the Bear Mountain Bridge, was not mentioned during the discussion.

The nearest indoor skating rinks are the Westchester Skating Academy in Elmsford and the Evarts Rink at the Harvey School in Katonah.

The next meeting where officials could take legislative action is Tuesday, Feb. 12. The agenda for the meeting has not been finalized, and it was unclear whether the item will appear on the agenda for a vote.